I’ve embedded a quick view from the first season of Building Green TV for PBS. Kevin Contreras is the show’s host and he’s going to navigate viewers through a variety of different green building situations. In addition to the episode above, you can catch some more at their newly redesigned website. Coming June 2007.

Recently, Paris-based architect Jacques Ferrier unleashed his "Hypergreen" mixed-use skyscraper concept, which was submitted for a project competition in Paris. Hypergreen incorporates a curving lattice facade made of ultra-high-performance concrete that acts as the building’s primary structural system. It has the look of steel, almost resembling some of Foster’s designs such as Hearst Tower or 30 St Mary Axe. Measuring 246 meters in height, Hypergreen has the following green features: geothermal heat pumps, photovoltaic panels, integrated wind turbines, earth cooling tubes, vegetated sky lobbies, a roof garden, rainwater recovery system, and flexible and adaptable floor plates. The exoskeleton reduces the number of columns that make for odd floor plates.

I started Jetson Green using the Blogger platform, but quickly came to realize that I wouldn’t be able to manipulate the design as needed. So I took all the articles and switched them to Typepad, the service I’m using now. I call that stage of the blog "Jetson Green v1.0." After about 10 months with this service, I’ve tried to tweak things here and there. Today, however, you’ll notice that I’ve given the old blog a new face. We’ll try it out and see how it goes. I’ve been wanting to throw both sidebars to the right side, and today I figured out how to do that. I have more changes in store, but today’s changes are likely the most visual of what you will see in the future. I hope you like the design, but as always, the #1 goal is to have good content…have a good weekend.

I was blown away when I found out about this online blog at the Star Tribune in Minneapolis, Minnesota. It’s called From the Ground Up and the journal is tracking Jason Hammond’s quest to build a unique, modern home in the Twin Cities. The blog also includes information from the project’s architect, Michael Huber, and the project’s builder, Corey Benedict. From the Ground Up has become a huge success, with people of all backgrounds and interests chiming in to figure out what it takes to live in something modern + green. What I really like about the blog, however, is the pragmatic approach to building green. For many of us, myself included, it’s expensive to get into a well-designed, green home. So the process from beginning to end must be comprehensive and calculated, especially if you don’t want to waste money. From the Ground Up will "consider the balance between [Hammond's] family’s needs, the project costs, and the environmental considerations that go along with new home building." I already like what I see and can’t wait to continue reading about their home as it approaches completion. Via rolu | dsgn.

Have you ever wondered what it would be like to put a Michelle Kaufmann Designs home on your piece of land? Now you can do it, and you’re going to love this. Here’s what you do:

Step 1: Go to the Google 3D Warehouse and type in "MKD." You should see designs for the mkSolaire, Sunset Breezehouse, and Glidehouse. Nice. These files are for use with SketchUp. Download the design you want for your home.

Step 2: Download a free copy of Google SketchUp and use SketchUp to open the file you downloaded in Step 1. Using SketchUp, modify the landscape of your home. (I must admit, I’m still learning how to use this program and do this step).

Step 3: Download a free copy of Google Earth. Find the location of your site. Plop your SketchUp model on the site that you’ve located.

That’s the process. It’s a pretty cool mashup allowing you to envision the land of your dreams with the home of your dreams. If anyone does anything cool, drop a line below.